A UK start-up formed by the University of Warwick and the University of Birmingham has landed funding worth nearly GBP 500,000 (around EUR 553,000) to commercialise a new liquid resin which is expected to speed up recovery times for patients undergoing major medical procedures. 4D Medicine, trading as 4D Biomaterials (www.4dbiomaterials.co.uk), received grant funding of GBP 197,000 from Innovate UK and GBP 281,000 from private equity firm SPC Capital. 4D Biomaterials will look to roll out the new polycarbonate-based resins, which can be printed into solid 3D scaffolds and aid the regrowth of healthy tissue following surgery.

The resins were developed by the start-up’s founders, Andrew Dove and Andrew Weems, and are described by the pair as “novel bioresorbable materials with good shape memory, tunable mechanical and chemical properties and very promising tissue-healing performance.” Philip Smith, a university start-up veteran and 4D Medicine’s chief executive, added, “The academic team at Birmingham has created a breakthrough in biomedical materials that promises to improve experiences and outcomes for millions of patients across the world.”